Coach Tristan Decker

With a decade of fencing experience, Tristan Decker has a passion for teaching and learning. A former Division 1 starter for NJIT and a consistent USFA national fencer, Tristan received his first A rating at the age of 16.  Tristan has several years of assistant coaching experience at Kids Can Fence and other area clubs.

Coach Tristan believes in a holistic approach to proper training and wants to help students take the next step in their fencing career by creating a fun yet challenging training experience.  He encourages conversations with his students and parents alike to help them better understand what the sport of fencing can offer in terms of personal and athletic growth. 

Tristan currently studies Electrical Engineering at NJIT, while tutoring math on the side. He lives in Bernardsville NJ and is very excited to be taking over full-time coaching at Kids Can Fence.

Coach Cole Degeorges

Coach Cole Degeorges began fencing Sabre at age 10 and has not looked back since.  With more than a decade of competitive experience, his many fencing achievements include qualifying for numerous USFA national championships and Junior Olympic events.  Individually, at the age of 17 he was one of USFA’s top 100 Junior sabre fencers in the US with national ranking points and was a second place sabre winner in USFA’s Region 3 Men’s Junior Sabre for 2015-2016.  Throughout his high school career,  Cole and his team garnered many fencing awards, most notably he and his squad won 1^st place in New Jersery’s prestigious Cetrulo state tournament.

Recruited to fence Division 1 for NJIT’s Men’s Fencing team, Cole was a sabre squad starter and served as squad captain for his sophomore, junior and senior years.  Highlights of his college fencing career included qualifying and competing in NCAA regionals and winning the Mid Atlantic Conference Fencing Association’s first place title for NJIT’s Men’s Sabre squad and over-all three weapon team title.

As a coach and a competitor, Cole believes there is an intrinsic connection between competition, self-improvement, confidence and fun within this sport.  He encourages his students to challenge themselves competitively and to think about the sport with a critical mindset, believing that this type of analysis bleeds into many other aspects of life as he speaks from his own personal experience.

A 2018 computer science graduate from NJIT, Coach Cole has worked in the programming industry for the past two years.  As a teacher he has taught not only fencing but also swimming and computer programming. His coaching experience includes Kids Can Fence and other area clubs.  He is also proud to call himself an Eagle Scout.